​How to Organize a New CEC Chapter or Reactivate an Inactive Chapter

As the leading voice in special and gifted education, CEC membership can offer professional development, resources and peer-to-peer support current and future teachers and educators need to meet today's new challenges in special and gifted education with confidence and make a difference for children and youth with disabilities and gifts and talents. For more information about CEC’s mission and benefits, please visit: http://www.celebrateexceptional.org/.
 
Follow the steps below to become recognized as a student chapter in the State of Massachusetts!
  1. Contact the MCEC Student Chapter Chair to find out what requirements you’ll need to meet to become officially recognized. Please note that recognition of your chapter comes from MCEC – not CEC Headquarters.
  2. Contact the student activities office at your university to find out the requirements you’ll need to meet to be a recognized organization at your college/university.
  3. Recruit Members. Schedule a meeting, and invite everyone who might be interested! At this meeting, appoint or elect officers, establish committees, and sign up new members.
    1. In order to be recognized, you’ll need at least 10 members. These can be both new members and transfers from other chapters.
      1. For current CEC members who want to be assigned to your chapter, complete the membership transfer form.
      2. For new members, you’ll need to send their membership application and payment to CEC or encourage them to join online on the CEC website (www.cec.sped.org)
    2. Please Note: Not all college/university students qualify for student membership in CEC. CEC defines a student member as: “…a person enrolled in The Council who is a full-time student during the academic year as defined by an accredited college or university or a person enrolled in The Council who is a part-time student who is not engaged in full-time employment as a certified professional in the field of education.”
  4. Elect or Appoint Officers. There is a minimum of 3 student member officers required to start or reactivate a chapter. 
  5. Create and Approve a Constitution and Bylaws. All student chapters in MCEC are required to keep a current, approved constitution and bylaws on file with MCEC. For a list of required elements, please see the Chapter Constitution and Bylaws Checklist.
  6. Submit required materials to MCEC Student Chapter Chair (lianna.pizzo@umb.edu):
    1. Chapter application (new chapters only)
    2. List of officers form
    3. Constitution and Bylaws
    4. For New Members
      1. List of new members who have indicated they will join online
    5. For Current Members
      1. List of current CEC members who with to be assigned to your chapter along with a photocopy of their membership transfer form
  7. Submit required materials to National CEC office (membership@cec.sped.org):
    1. List of new members who have indicated they will join online
    2. Membership transfer form for current members
That’s all there is to it! The MCEC chair will contact you if we have any questions and will notify you when your chapter has been officially recognized. If you are forming a new chapter, they will also notify you when your chapter number has been assigned.
Questions for MCEC?Questions for CEC National Office?
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